Wednesday, May 30, 2012

(Literal) Scrapping Pains!

A few posts ago I titled my post "Scrapping Pains." Well, there's more.

What has scrapping done to me? Carpal tunnel in my wrists and now I have to wear Ace bandages around my ankles to protect the skin. I sit with my legs crossed over each other (when I was little we called sitting like this "Indian style") in my big leather desk chair, and you can see on the leather where the finish has rubbed off and is discolored from my ankles resting there. I will spare you the photos of what they look like. When I stand up from scrapping, my mom will gasp if she sees the outside of my ankles and feet because it looks like they've been burned severely. It finally started getting painful so I am now wearing bandages to protect the skin on my ankles. I feel like an athlete...an athlete who sits and creates :)

These are the braces I wear when I sleep to keep my wrists straight and the median nerves unrestricted (this is a reversed photo, like looking in a mirror...the hand on the left is really my left hand, not my right):



And here are the bandages on my ankles:


There must be a name for this...oh, right, it's called being an obsessed scrapper! :)

Monday, May 28, 2012

What's New?

Hi friends! So I finally finished all the calendars I had in mind. These are mini calendars that are perfect for a number of projects. I have one set for 2012, a fill-in calendar that I can send you for free (just comment with your e-mail), and a set for 2013. Go to my Zibbet shop at www.zibbet.com/kinetickatie to check them out! The pre-numbered calendars are $3 each.

I'm also running a special in my shop: until I raise $20, the minimum donation to the ASPCA, 20% of every order before taxes and shipping will go towards that $20 donation. According to the ASPCA, $20 will feed a homeless dog or cat for three weeks! I am super excited about donating to the ASPCA, I really wish I had the financial means to be part of their monthly donation club.

In my last post I mentioned some charms I made for some friends, one a loyal customer at my shop. Here are the turquoise charms I made for them:

This one was made for a client.

This one, with the daisy charms, was made for a high school/church friend's wife.

If you want to learn to make charms of your own, comment so I can see what kind of demand there is for a video tutorial :)

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Scrapping Pains

So what have I been up to? Scrapping constantly! I have carpal tunnel in both wrists right now, but I can't stop creating, it's such a big part of my life! Thankfully I can work without splints, though I do have to wear them at night or I am in a lot of pain the next day.

So what have I been working on exactly? First I created two custom charms, then made 100 mini ivory envelopes for an Etsy order, did a project for Mother's Day, and am now working on items for an upcoming craft fair I hope to do! I am having a BLAST creating things for the fair!

My favorite thing I've done, though, is this fabric journal I learned to make from my friend Martica here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZU5jSUfyS-s  I've made four so far of varying sizes and am working on the fifth now (hint: it's denim!). Here are the photos of the projects (minus the envelopes and most of the craft fair items):

My first fabric journal. I made the flower in the center :)

This is my second fabric journal. It measures 3.5x5 inches, and just sold in my shop.

My third and smallest fabric "journal." This one's more like a notepad. It's a keychain measuring 3" square.

My fourth fabric journal and my most eclectic.

Altered Mini Clipboard, soon to be for sale in my Zibbet shop.



This is a charm I made as a gift for my best friend Brandy up in Canadaland :)

Friday, May 11, 2012

Hard at Work

I've been hard at work creating items for my Zibbet shop. I learned to create paper bag flowers and they are fun and turned out awesome! Here are the ones I created:


I also learned to make beaded daisy sprays on YouTube (link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lzg4zTZrhB8&feature=related). It's a great tutorial, and if you try it make sure you use something weaker than 24 gauge wire...my fingers were so sore after I finished this one!

I added velvet leaves and floral tape.

So I got some 28 gauge wire and it's much easier to work with, and I didn't stab myself three times making these two:



I've also been busy uploading new YouTube videos. Check out my channel if you haven't already here: http://www.youtube.com/theElegantCriminal

I am having a giveaway right now, until the 20th of this month, so be sure to check it out!